A brief look at Abdul-Qadir Jilani and Moinuddin Chishti, and their ‘aqeedah (doctrine)

Question

Could you tell me about the historical figures Shaykh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani and Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti? Because there are many of their followers around the world, hence I want to know how close they were to the path of truth?

Imam
adh-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) said of him: The shaykh, imam,
scholar, ascetic (zaahid), ‘aarif (devoted worshipper), Shaykh al-Islam,
‘Alam al-Awliya’ (The most prominent of the close friends (awliya’, sing.
wali) of Allah).

Siyar
A‘laam an-Nubala’,
20/439

Imam
as-Sam‘aani (may Allah have mercy) said of him: ‘Abdul-Qaadir was one of the
people of Jilan, the imam and shaykh of the Hanbalis of his time, a
scholar, righteous, religiously committed, charitable; he remembered Allah a
great deal (dhikr), was always deep in thought and was quick to weep.

See: Siyar
A ‘laam an-Nubala’, 20/441

Ibn Katheer
(may Allah have mercy on him) said: He had a dignified bearing, and he kept
quiet except for enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil; he had
very little interest in worldly gain (i.e., he was an ascetic); miracles
were attributed to him; his followers and companions spoke a great deal
about him and narrated from him his words, actions and miracles, but most of
the reports about his miracles are exaggerated. He was righteous and pious,
and wrote books called al-Ghunyah and Futooh al-Ghayb, in
which there are good things and in which he also quoted da‘eef (weak) and
mawdoo‘ (fabricated) hadeeths. To sum up, he was one of the leading
shaykhs.

Al-Bidaayah
wa’n-Nihaayah,
12/768

5.

Some students
decided to research the ‘aqeedah (doctrine) and life story of Jilaani, as
did Shaykh Sa‘eed ibn Musfir in his book Shaykh ‘Abdul-Qaadir Jilani wa
Araa’uhu al-I‘tiqaadiyyah wa’s-Sufiyyah (Shaykh Abdul-Qadir Jilani and
his doctrinal and Sufi beliefs), which was his doctoral thesis in Umm
al-Qura University [in Makkah]. Summing up his research, he said:

Firstly:
Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qaadir al-Jilaani was Salafi in his ‘aqeedah (beliefs), in
accordance with the methodology of Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah in all
matters of ‘aqeedah, such as issues of faith, Tawheed (affirming the Oneness
of Allah), Prophethood, and the Last Day. He also affirmed that it is
obligatory to obey those in authority, and that it is not permissible to
rebel against them.

Secondly: He
was one of the leading Sufi shaykhs during their early stages, when their
concepts were moderate and closer to the Sunnah, and in most cases were
based on the Qur’an and Sunnah, with a particular focus on deeds of the
heart (spirituality).

Thirdly: with
regard to his learning the sciences of tasawwuf from shaykhs who lacked
knowledge based on the Qur’an and Sunnah, such as his shaykh ad-Dabbaas, who
was illiterate and could neither read nor write, he – may Allah have mercy
on him – fell into some mistakes and practised some innovations in worship,
but these slips are superseded by the vast number of his good deeds. Nobody
is infallible except the Prophets; all others are subject to error, and if
the volume of water reaches two large vessels, it cannot be contaminated by
impurity (as stated in the books of fiqh).

Fourthly: most
of what is attributed to Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qaadir al-Jilani of miracles (karaamaat)
are exaggerated, and some of them are not soundly narrated. Of those that
may be accepted, they either come under the heading of insight (firaasah) or
of miracles (karaamaat) which Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah believe may
happen, subject to shar‘i guidelines that are explained in the appendix to
this thesis. End quote.

His full name
is: al-Khawaja Mu‘een ad-Deen Hasan ibn al-Khawaja Ghiyath ad-Deen al-Sijzi,
who is known as “Ghareeb Nawaaz” (“the helper of the poor” or “the giver to
the poor”).

2.

He was born in
Sistan – in north-eastern Iran – in 536 AH and he died in 627 AH.

3.

He is one of
the most famous awliya’ (“saints”) in northern India – if not the
most famous of them – and his grave is one of the most shrines frequently
visited by Sufis and those who believe in myths; it is even visited by
Hindus!

4.

It was said
regarding the reason for his embracing Sufism that whilst Mu‘een ad-Deen
Chishti was watering his plants in his garden, he was visited by a Sufi man
whose name was Shaykh Ibraaheem Kunduz. The young man Mu‘een ad-Deen Chishti
approached him and offered him some fruits, and in return Shaykh Ibraaheem
Kunduz gave him a lock from his beard and asked him to eat it! The “saint”
Mu‘een ad-Deen did so, and he became enlightened and found himself in a
strange world. After this incident he disposed of his garden and all his
possessions, and distributed his wealth to the poor. He renounced this world
and went to Bukhara to seek knowledge.

5.

Chishti
travelled to many places, then he decided to go to India because of a dream
in which the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) instructed
him to do so. So he went to India and stayed in Lahore, then after a short
while he went to Ajmer – in the region of Rajasthan – where he settled and
where he died.

6.

He is the
founder of the innovated Sufi order that is known in India as the
Chishtiyyah – after the town of Chisht in Herat, in north-western
Afghanistan.

7.

The order of
Mu‘een ad-Deen is no different from other innovated Sufi orders; indeed,
some of these orders hold beliefs that constitute kufr (disbelief).

In this order
there is something that they call al-muraaqabah al-chishtiyyah (the Chishti
meditation). This means spending half an hour a week at the graveside. The
mureed (Sufi disciple) covers his head and recites dhikr, saying “Allahu
haadiri Allahu naaziri (Allaah is with me, Allah is watching over me).”

Undoubtedly
this is an innovation and misguidance; indeed there is a fear that it may
open the door to ascribing partners to Allah, may He be exalted, because the
Sufi may be influenced by the occupant of the grave, and his thinking,
meditation and focus may be for him, which comes under the heading of major
shirk.

Thirdly:

The scholars
of the Standing Committee were asked:

I hope that
you will do us the honour of writing for us some brief comments on Sufism
and Sufis, what Sufism is, what their beliefs are, the opinion of Ahl
as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah concerning them, and what one who is of Ahl
as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah should do, or how he should interact with them if
these Sufis insist on their beliefs, and they think that they are following
truth even after the facts have been explained to them and have become clear
to them.

They replied:

The word
Sufism is derived from “soof”, meaning wool, because they wore garments made
of wool, and that is linguistically more likely and closer to the reality of
their way of life. With regard to the view that the word Sufism is derived
from “as-suffah” because they are similar to the poor Sahaabah (may Allah be
pleased with them), who used to gather by the suffah (bench) in the
Prophet’s mosque, or that it is derived from “safwah” (purity) because of
the purity of their hearts and deeds, all of that is wrong and is not
correct, because the adjective derived from suffah is suffi, and the
adjective derived from safwah is safawi. These two meanings are not
applicable to them, because in most cases their beliefs are corrupt and they
follow a lot of innovations.

All the Sufi
orders (tareeqahs) or that which is called tasawwuf (Sufism) nowadays are
full of actions that are innovated and constitute shirk, or the means that
lead to it, as well as corrupted beliefs that are contrary to the Qur’an and
Sunnah, such as seeking the help of the dead and the aqtaab (sing. qutb,
meaning a holy man or saint) by saying “Madad ya seedi (Help, O my
master)”, or “Madad ya Sayyidah Zaynab (Help, O Lady Zaynab),” or “Madad
ya Badawi (Help, O Badawi)” or “Ya Dasooqi (O Dasooqi)” and other cries
for help to the shaykhs and “saints”, believing that they can see into
people’s hearts and that they have knowledge of the unseen and what the
hearts conceal, and that they have secret powers that enable them to do
extraordinary things, and calling upon Allah by names that He did not call
Himself, such as “Hu Hu Hu” and “Ah Ah Ah.”

The Sufis have
innovated awraad (sing. wird) and du‘aa’s (supplications) that are not
prescribed in Islam. They take a pledge from their disciples (mureeds) that
they will mention Allah in their rituals and worship by particular specific
divine names, in unison, such as saying “Allah, Hayy (Every-Living), and
Qayyoom (Self-Sustaining).” They repeat it every day and night, and they do
not recite other names of Allah except with the permission of their shaykhs,
otherwise they would be disobeying their shaykhs and would be afraid of the
servants of these names. They do all of that whilst swaying, bowing, rising,
dancing, singing and clapping, and other actions for which there is no basis
and that are not known in the Book of Allah or the Sunnah of His Messenger
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).

No Muslim
should sit in their gatherings and he must avoid mixing with them, so that
he will not be influenced by their corrupt beliefs, lest he fall into the
same shirk and innovation that they have fallen into. He should advise them
and explain the truth to them in the hope that Allah will guide them at his
hands, whilst affirming those matters in which they are in accordance with
the Qur’an and Sunnah, and denouncing those matters in which they go against
them. In doing so he must adhere to the methodology of Ahl as-Sunnah
wa’l-Jamaa‘ah, so as to protect his religious commitment. Whoever wants to
know about the Sufis and their beliefs in detail should read Madaarij
as-Saalikeen by Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah and Hadhihi hiya as-Soofiyyah
by ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan al-Wakeel.